I am progressing with the sale of my apartment in Alcester and the EA has just text me to say that the purchasers are changing their conveyancer. I am told that this is due to the fact that the bank will only deal with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a leading lender only engage with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Alcester ?

Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Nationwide, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for decades.

Lending institutions blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.

My lender has recommended a law firm on their panel based in Alcester but I would rather choose a conveyancing lawyer in Alcester or nearer to where I live. Can you assist?

Not all Alcester conveyancing practices are approved and listed on all lender’s conveyancing panel. Please make use of the above search tool to choose a Alcester conveyancing conveyancer on the on the lender panel.

I used Wolstenholmes a few years past for my conveyancing in Alcester. Now, I need the files however cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?

You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracking down your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Alcester of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Alcester conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Alcester conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggest that you speak with several firms including non Alcester conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions might be helpful:

Can they put you in touch with clients in Alcester who can give a testimonial?

I invested in buying a split level flat in Alcester, conveyancing having been completed in 2001. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar flats in Alcester with a long lease are worth £180,000. The ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2085

You have 59 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £20,900 and £24,200 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.

We are hoping to buy a three room apartmentin Alcester with a mortgage from a bank. We wish to instruct our lawyer in Alcester however our lender says he's not approved on their "panel". It seems we have little choice but to instruct from the our bank panel firms or keep our Alcester conveyancer and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?

No, not really. The mortgage company home loan offered to you is subject to conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the mortgage company's conveyancing panel. in the past, most mortgage companies had open panels, including almost all conveyancing solicitors in Alcester : a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for your bank.